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Luke Fickell says young Wisconsin Badgers running back may miss entire 2026 season with injury

The Badgers have been agressively pursuing running backs in the transfer portal. Now, we know why
Cam Wilhorn|
Nov 8, 2025; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers running back Gideon Ituka (10) rushes with the football during the first quarter against the Washington Huskies at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
Nov 8, 2025; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; Wisconsin Badgers running back Gideon Ituka (10) rushes with the football during the first quarter against the Washington Huskies at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

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Wisconsin Badgers

Gideon Ituka began his redshirt freshman season fourth on the Wisconsin Badgers depth chart.

Part of a three-RB 2024 freshman class, Ituka remained on the sidelines while classmates Dilin Jones and Darrion Dupree received most of the carries along with veteran Cade Yacamelli to begin the year.

But injuries began to pile up during conference play, and eventually, Ituka was the only healthy running back.

He capitalized on the opportunity, until he suffered a scary injury to the head and neck area against Indiana on Nov. 16. He was strapped to a backboard and taken to a local hospital in Bloomington.

Despite the frightening optics, it looked like Ituka had avoided any serious injury. He offered a thumbs up while being carted off the field and was even cleared to fly home with the team later that night.

However, his injury has lingered and could cost him the entire 2026 season.

Luke Fickell says Badgers are planning to be without Gideon Ituka for 2026

Luke Fickell told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel on Thursday that the team is advancing under the premise that Ituka will be unavailable for the entirety of the 2026 campaign.

Fickell didn't provide any specifics regarding Ituka's injury, but the update explains the Badgers aggressive pursuit of running backs in the transfer portal.

They've added three tailbacks to the room, so far: Iowa State's Abu Sama, USC's Bryan Jackson and TCU's Nate Palmer.

Related: Abu Sama's biggest skill was a missing piece of Wisconsin Badgers' 2025 offense

Wisconsin already needed to pick up multiple tailbacks after Jones and Yacamelli announced their intent to enter the transfer portal.

But landing a starting caliber RB in Sama, a productive Big Ten tailback in Jackson and a promising young talent in Palmer might have seemed like overkill.

But with Ituka seemingly out of the picture, Wisconsin's running back room would have been nearly empty.

Before the transfer additions and without Ituka, Dupree and true freshman Qwantavius Wiggins would have been the Badgers' only RBs on scholarship.

Now, they've built a room with a quality depth and strong top end.

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Ituka's projected absence is still quite disappointing. The tailback had emerged from the shadows of Jones and Dupree in 2025 and threw his hat in the ring to be Wisconsin's 2026 starter.

"He showed us some things tonight that he can be a back of the future," Fickell said after Ituka ran for 85 yards during a 21-7 loss to Oregon."Even if those [injured running backs] were back, I don't know that you would say that Gideon hasn't earned the opportunity and the right to be the guy that steps out there to start the whole thing off."

His 5-foot-9, 227-pound frame made him difficult to tackle, while having more than enough burst to break off lengthy runs and agility make decisive cuts.

On the season, he rushed 60 times for 255 yards. According to PFF, Ituka forced 14 missed tackles and had five runs of 10 or more yards.

He finished the year as Wisconsin's highest graded running back, per PFF.

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Cam Wilhorn
CAM WILHORN

Cam Wilhorn is a University of Wisconsin School of Journalism Graduate and Wisconsin native. He's been covering Wisconsin sports since 2023 for outlets like BadgerBlitz.com, Badger of Honor and The Badger Herald.

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